Pinellas Crews Respond To Flooding, Assess Damage After Eta

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL — County crews began responding to damage reports overnight, including traffic signals, downed trees and flooding. The County is documenting damage reports for potential state and federal emergency assistance. Residents can document damage on their property with the Online Damage Assessment Tool - https://arcg.is/1T4i9j.

• To report immediate public safety hazards or get additional information, residents can call the County Information Center at (727) 464-4333 until 5 p.m. today. Friday hours: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Residents who are deaf or hard of hearing can contact the CIC via online chat at www.bit.ly/PinellasChat.
• A total of 52 people voluntarily sheltered at the Ross Norton Recreation Center and Lealman Exchange overnight. Both shelters will close at noon today.
• County offices remain closed to the public today while staff complete damage assessments, but are expected to reopen Friday. PSTA will resume regular weekday services today at noon.
• The Solid Waste Disposal Facility, Administration Building and Household Electronics and Chemical Collection Center and the Tropicana Field COVID-19 testing site are closed today. Check with your local trash hauler for trash and recycling pickup status.

Advice & Information for Residents

• Be cautious on the road. Do not drive through standing water. Remember: turn around, don’t drown.
• Avoid downed or dangling utility wires.
• Running generators or camp cooking equipment inside your house can be lethal.
• Place generators outdoors or in a well-ventilated area. Plug appliances directly into the generator.
• Do not plug portable generators into home electrical outlets.
• Conserve generator fuel by limiting appliance usage to the bare essentials.
• Exercise caution when clearing fallen trees or walking through water puddles. They may have power lines tangled or laying in them.
• For storm debris, residents should carefully collect limbs or other yard debris for pickup by their normal city or private trash hauler.
• Clean up most dangerous conditions first, such as broken glass.
• 9-1-1 is for reporting life-threatening emergencies only - not damages or power outages. To report power outages, call Duke Energy at (800) 228-8485.
• Get updates on Tropical Storm Eta recovery efforts by visiting www.pinellascounty.org, Facebook @PinellasCountyNews and Twitter @PinellasCoNews.

This press release was produced by the Pinellas County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.